Pizza Dough

I might be biased. For many years, flour has been the predominant Dough Yield
factor in my work life: sponges and doughs, mixing, kneading, shaping; U.S.: 10 crusts at 1 lb each
flour, flour, flour. After all this, it doesnt seem odd to me that I think Metric: 10 crusts at .454 kg each
pizza is mostly about the crust. Well-made toppings are easy enough to Home: 2 crusts
make (as long as the more-is-better philosophy doesnt result in a mass
of lavalike cheese in a molten, tongue-searing puddle). Fresh ingredients
for the top, and not too many of them, a hot, hot oven, and a quick and lively bake
these are all important. (The best pizza I have ever eaten was baked in a wood-fired Qubec-style clay oven in Norwich, Vermont. A Bosnian immigrant named Milos built and
tended the fire, made the toppings for a dozen pizzas, and handled the bakeabout 2
minutes per pizza. My meager contributions consisted of making the dough for the crusts
and helping as much as I possibly could with the eating!) Its the crust that is most often
elusive. Just as it is really no secret that the best pizzas bake in just a few minutes, it is also
no secret that the best pizza dough is one that has all the benefits of slow fermentation
and enough moisture so that the baked crust is crisp and brown, with a light, open-textured
chewiness. One common technique used to lengthen and slow down fermentation is to
retard the dough (many pizza makers divide the dough into pizza-sized weights and retard
them that way). A second method, and the one employed in the present formula, is to
make a biga the day before the final dough is mixed. The biga then injects the final dough
with all the fragrance and flavors of its gentle fermentation.
Overall Formula
U.S.

Metric

Home

Bakers %

Bread flour

5.68 lb

2.58 kg

1 lb, 2.2 oz

100%

Water

3.86 lb

1.75 kg

12.4 oz

68%

.1 lb

.046 kg

.3 oz

1.8%

.07 lb, fresh

.034 kg, fresh

.13 oz, instant dry

(1 tsp)

1.3%

Extra-virgin
olive oil

.29 lb

.13 kg

.9 oz

5%

Total Yield

10 lb

4.54 kg

1 lb, 15.8 oz

176.1%

Salt
Yeast

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Biga
1.14 lb

.52 kg

3.6 oz ( cup)

100%

Water

.68 lb

.31 kg

2.2 oz ( cup)

60%

Yeast

.002 lb, fresh

.001 kg, fresh

.001 oz (a small pinch)

.2%

Total

1.822 lb

.831 kg

5.8 oz

Bread flour

4.54 lb

2.06 kg

14.6 oz (3 cups)

Water

3.18 lb

1.44 kg

10.2 oz (1 cups)

.1 lb

.046 kg

.3 oz ( T)

.068 lb

.033 kg

.13 oz, instant dry (scant 1 tsp)

.29 lb

.13 kg

.9 oz (2 T)

1.822 lb

.831 kg

5.8 oz (all of above)

10 lb

4.54 kg

1 lb, 15.8 oz

Bread flour

Final Dough

Salt
Yeast
Extra-virgin
olive oil
Biga
Total

1. BIGA: Disperse the yeast in the water, add the flour,

and mix until just smooth. The biga should be stiff

and dense. Cover the bowl with plastic and let stand
for 12 to 16 hours at about 70F. When ripe, the biga
will be domed and just beginning to recede in the
center.
2. MIXING: Add all the ingredients to the mixing
bowl except the biga and the olive oil. For production of 20 crusts or fewer, a small spiral mixer or
20-quart planetary mixer works well. In a planetarytype mixer, mix on first speed for 3 minutes in order
to incorporate the ingredients. As the dough is coming together, add the biga in chunks. If necessary, correct the hydration by adding water or flour in small
amounts. The dough should be of medium consistency at this point. Turn the mixer to second speed.
After 3 minutes of mixing, begin drizzling in the olive
oil. Once it is incorporated, mix for an additional 2
or 3 minutes on second, until the dough has some
supple body to it. The olive oil will coat and lubricate
the gluten strands, slowing their development, so the

09_9781118132715-ch08.indd 345

extra mixing time is beneficial. The dough will not

be highly developed at the end of the mix, but nevertheless it should have perceptible gluten development when tugged. Desired dough temperature: 75F.
3. BULK FERMENTATION: 2 hours. Optionally, after 1
hour the dough can be divided into 1-pound balls,
covered with plastic, and refrigerated for up to 16
hours.
4. FOLDING: Fold the dough once, after 1 hour of

bulk fermentation.
5. DIVIDING AND SHAPING: Divide the dough into

1-pound pieces. Round lightly, place on a floured

work surface with the seams down, sprinkle a light
coating of flour over the tops, and cover with plastic.
Let the dough relax for about 20 minutes (refrigerated dough balls will take up to an hour to relax
after removing from refrigeration). When the dough
is sufficiently relaxed and will stretch without tearing, begin stretching it between both hands. Rotate
the dough as you stretch it so the thickness remains

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roughly equal. As the dough gets thinner, your fingers

can easily puncture it, so make your hands into fists
to finish the stretching. Eventually, the dough should
be about 16 inches in diameter and quite thin, except
for a bulbous rim about 1 inch wide all around.
6. FINAL FERMENTATION: Once shaped, there is no
need to let the dough proof. It can bake right away.
Transfer the pizza to a peel onto which coarse cornmeal or semolina has been sprinkled. Spread over the
toppings of your choice. Leave the rim of the crust
free of toppings.
7. BAKING: Except in a wood-fired oven, it is almost

impossible to have an oven that is too hot for pizza.

Ideally, the temperature soars to over 700F, ensuring a quick, searing bake (if you are able to bake at

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these temperatures, there is no need to cook the

toppingsthe oven will do that). Needless to say,
neither standard hearth bread ovens nor home ovens
can reach this realm of heat. Nevertheless, very good
pizza can be made at lower temperatures. The best
we can do is to crank up our oven to the highest
possible temperature. If baking in a home oven, a
preheated baking stone is essential. Quickly slide the
pizza onto the hot stone. If more than one pizza is
being made, stretch the dough for the second one
and assemble it while the first bakes. If pizzas are going to be baked over the course of a few hours, refrigerate some of the dough once it has been divided to
prevent it from becoming overaged.

Bread: A Bakers book of techniques and recipes

10/15/12 2:06 PM